Collection History
The name "1521" takes up, according to the account provided by the brand itself, the production reference number assigned by Charles Von Büren in the 1960s to one of the first waterproof cases designed specifically for professional diving: not a name chosen for commercial reasons, but a catalog code from the period when Squale operated mainly as a contract supplier of cases.
The most recognizable trait of the original reference is the crown position, moved to 4 o'clock: a choice the brand describes as functional rather than aesthetic, intended to move it away from the side of the wrist and prevent an accidental knock during diving from unscrewing it. The unidirectional 120-click bezel, with a high-visibility orange minute hand, completes a setup designed for calculating ascent times.
After the long period of inactivity following the 1989 quartz crisis, the 1521 is among the first historic references to be brought back into production with the brand's relaunch promoted by the Maggi family. Since then it has grown into a collection of its own, with numerous dial, bezel and strap variants, including executions with COSC-certified movements.
Technical Specifications
Main Executions
The number that gives the collection its name is not a symbolic reference but — as the brand itself tells it — the code of an old production reference number: a detail that says more than many words about Squale's origin as a contract case manufacturer, even before it became a watch brand with its own catalog.